When the boss refuses the raise – what employees can ask for instead

Many employees feel underpaid in their job. Sooner or later this can become a real problem for employers. But often a higher gross wage is not necessarily the best. Because the increase in the tax burden ensures that the bottom line is that not much is left over for smaller amounts. Sometimes it is advantageous to reward employees differently without increasing the salary.

Company car instead of a salary increase

Many an alternative can be worthwhile for both sides. Because so-called non-monetary benefits are often subject to little or no tax. Employees who negotiate job tickets, childcare fees or even yoga courses with their supervisor benefit more economically. A company car or bicycle is also possible. The company car in particular is a popular tool for retaining executives. The purely professional use is tax and social security free. If the car can also be used privately, the employee must pay tax on his benefit in kind every month at one percent of the gross list price or settle it with a logbook. In contrast to a company car, employees can even use a company bike 100 percent privately without this use having to be additionally taxed. There would only be a pecuniary advantage of one percent of the new price. A bike worth 1,000 euros would only have to be taxed for ten euros.

Allowance for employee travel

Travel allowances are also possible. If the boss pays a flat rate of 0.30 euros per kilometer in addition to the salary and the employee uses his private car for the daily journey to work, the employee does not pay any taxes or social security contributions. Incidentally, this also applies to a subsidy for public transport. However, the advantage is only exempt from tax and social security contributions if the monthly exemption limit of 44 euros is not exceeded. This also includes other benefits in kind, such as petrol vouchers. So that the effort for this relatively small amount does not become too great, so-called prepaid credit cards can also be used. As a bonus, a maximum of 10,000 euros per year can be paid out to the credit card for employees. This must then be taxed once at a flat rate of 30 percent and there is a small amount of social security contributions.

Tax-free benefits in kind and further training

Benefits such as smartphones or notebooks are also popular. If employees receive such a communication device at a reduced price or free of charge for private purposes, they do not have to pay any taxes for it. Only the employer would have to pay tax at a flat rate of 25 percent. In return, the boss keeps the proof of purchase and, if necessary, regulates warranty claims such as repairs or exchanges. Further training is also an option that does not incur any taxes or duties. However, these must lead to improved deployment options for the employee. If it has no specific connection to the activities or a change of position, it is taxable wages.

There are many ways a company can keep its employees happy, even without a raise. As an employee, you shouldn’t wait for the boss to figure it out on his own.

Editorial office finanzen.net

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